ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENT|BISMARCK — In the first months of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, North Dakota has emerged as a national leader, getting hundreds of thousands ofand immunizing more than a quarter of its population by late March.But top public health officials have asserted that “vaccine hesitancy” — skepticism or cynicism about taking the quickly authorized vaccines — will be North Dakota’s most daunting challenge on its path to herd immunity, and already, the pace of inoculation has slowed as the state has expanded eligibility for the vaccines to the general public.Nowhere is this...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENT|BISMARCK — In the first months of the COVID-19 vaccine rollout, North Dakota has emerged as a national leader, getting hundreds of thousands ofand immunizing more than a quarter of its population by late March.But top public health officials have asserted that “vaccine hesitancy” — skepticism or cynicism about taking the quickly authorized vaccines — will be North Dakota’s most daunting challenge on its path to herd immunity, and already, the pace of inoculation has slowed as the state has expanded eligibility for the vaccines to the general public.Nowhere is this...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — With no signs that the COVID-19 outbreak in North Dakota is easing up, doctors in the state are desperately petitioning local leaders and residents to get on board with mask-wearing.Physicians and health officials have promoted masks, social distancing and hand-washing for months, but with mounting deaths in nursing homes,and record infection rates, North Dakota’s medical community is sounding the alarm.Sixty-five pediatricians in the state signed an open letter sent to Gov. Doug Burgum on Tuesday, Oct. 13, asking him to institute a mask...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — With no signs that the COVID-19 outbreak in North Dakota is easing up, doctors in the state are desperately petitioning local leaders and residents to get on board with mask-wearing.Physicians and health officials have promoted masks, social distancing and hand-washing for months, but with mounting deaths in nursing homes,and record infection rates, North Dakota’s medical community is sounding the alarm.Sixty-five pediatricians in the state signed an open letter sent to Gov. Doug Burgum on Tuesday, Oct. 13, asking him to institute a mask...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Gov.signed legislation Friday, April 16, authorizing North Dakota public schools to post the Ten Commandments in classrooms.The bill cleared the House and Senate by wide margins earlier this session after lawmakers included provisions to gird against possible lawsuits, including one portion requiring that displays of the Judeo-Christian text appear alongside other historical documents.In a statement on the decision, Burgum said the bill "clarifies the existing authority" for schools to display culturally, historically and legally significant religious...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Gov.signed legislation Friday, April 16, authorizing North Dakota public schools to post the Ten Commandments in classrooms.The bill cleared the House and Senate by wide margins earlier this session after lawmakers included provisions to gird against possible lawsuits, including one portion requiring that displays of the Judeo-Christian text appear alongside other historical documents.In a statement on the decision, Burgum said the bill "clarifies the existing authority" for schools to display culturally, historically and legally significant religious...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Following are thecase rates, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations as of Thursday, March 25. Because all data is preliminary, some numbers and totals may change from one day to the next.North Dakota's active case count increased by 94 on Thursday. Cass County, which includes Fargo, reported 93 new cases and has 45% of the state's active cases. Nearly 70% of North Dakota's active infections are concentrated in its four largest metro areas: Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks and Minot. The two-week rolling average positivity rate is 3.4%.The...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Following are thecase rates, deaths, hospitalizations and vaccinations as of Thursday, March 25. Because all data is preliminary, some numbers and totals may change from one day to the next.North Dakota's active case count increased by 94 on Thursday. Cass County, which includes Fargo, reported 93 new cases and has 45% of the state's active cases. Nearly 70% of North Dakota's active infections are concentrated in its four largest metro areas: Fargo, Bismarck, Grand Forks and Minot. The two-week rolling average positivity rate is 3.4%.The...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — North Dakota senators voted by a wide margin Wednesday, Feb. 3, to pass a bill that would authorize public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.Lawmakers supportedby a vote of 34 to 13, in spite of opposition from several members who said that displaying the Ten Commandments in North Dakota schools would all but guarantee a federal lawsuit.In a warning to his colleagues, Sen. Ray Holmberg, R-Grand Forks, said that if he could make an amendment to the bill, he would tack on the words "if you dare" after the bill's permission to post the...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — North Dakota senators voted by a wide margin Wednesday, Feb. 3, to pass a bill that would authorize public schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms.Lawmakers supportedby a vote of 34 to 13, in spite of opposition from several members who said that displaying the Ten Commandments in North Dakota schools would all but guarantee a federal lawsuit.In a warning to his colleagues, Sen. Ray Holmberg, R-Grand Forks, said that if he could make an amendment to the bill, he would tack on the words "if you dare" after the bill's permission to post the...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — With COVID-19 cases running out of control in North Dakota in mid-November, Gov. Doug Burgum intervened, installing a statewide mask mandate. A month and a half later, the state's pandemic status is nearly unrecognizable: Active virus cases have descended from more than 10,000 at the time of the mandate to fewer than 2,000 today.But neighboring South Dakota, which had vied with North Dakota for the worst-in-the-nation per capita metrics for much of October and November, has experienced a similarly remarkable turnaround, and without any...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — With COVID-19 cases running out of control in North Dakota in mid-November, Gov. Doug Burgum intervened, installing a statewide mask mandate. A month and a half later, the state's pandemic status is nearly unrecognizable: Active virus cases have descended from more than 10,000 at the time of the mandate to fewer than 2,000 today.But neighboring South Dakota, which had vied with North Dakota for the worst-in-the-nation per capita metrics for much of October and November, has experienced a similarly remarkable turnaround, and without any...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Proponents of legalizing recreational marijuana in North Dakota are embarking on another petition effort after missing the signature cut-off for their measure to appear on last year's ballot.Supporters of the measure, which would amend the state Constitution to legalize personal possession of cannabis, submitted their petition to Secretary of State Al Jaeger on Monday, Jan. 11, seeking approval to appear on the 2022 general election ballot.If Jaeger approves the measure, backers can begin collecting the 26,904 signatures needed to appear on the...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — Proponents of legalizing recreational marijuana in North Dakota are embarking on another petition effort after missing the signature cut-off for their measure to appear on last year's ballot.Supporters of the measure, which would amend the state Constitution to legalize personal possession of cannabis, submitted their petition to Secretary of State Al Jaeger on Monday, Jan. 11, seeking approval to appear on the 2022 general election ballot.If Jaeger approves the measure, backers can begin collecting the 26,904 signatures needed to appear on the...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — A right-wing blogger and former Minot resident has become an improbable player in one of the lawsuits alleging that widespread voter fraud contributed to President Donald Trump’s defeat in the November election.Terpsehore Maras-Lindeman, an ardent Trump supporter and prolific podcaster and blogger, has a history of legal skirmishes with the state of North Dakota, but she has assumed a national profile in the last week after a Washington Post investigation revealed her to be a secret witness in two of attorney Sidney Powell’s election fraud...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — A right-wing blogger and former Minot resident has become an improbable player in one of the lawsuits alleging that widespread voter fraud contributed to President Donald Trump’s defeat in the November election.Terpsehore Maras-Lindeman, an ardent Trump supporter and prolific podcaster and blogger, has a history of legal skirmishes with the state of North Dakota, but she has assumed a national profile in the last week after a Washington Post investigation revealed her to be a secret witness in two of attorney Sidney Powell’s election fraud...WW…

ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — The North Dakota Emergency Commission voted Friday, Oct. 23, in favor of reallocating more than $221 million in federal coronavirus stimulus funds to more than a dozen different state agencies, including $16 million in oil industry fracking grants that have drawn pushback from critics.The funds voted on Friday are the unused leftovers of the total $1.25 billion pot originally allotted for North Dakota by Congress through the CARES Act early in the pandemic. For final approval of how those leftover funds will be spent, the Legislative Budget Section is...…ADVERTISEMENTADVERTISEMENTBISMARCK — The North Dakota Emergency Commission voted Friday, Oct. 23, in favor of reallocating more than $221 million in federal coronavirus stimulus funds to more than a dozen different state agencies, including $16 million in oil industry fracking grants that have drawn pushback from critics.The funds voted on Friday are the unused leftovers of the total $1.25 billion pot originally allotted for North Dakota by Congress through the CARES Act early in the pandemic. For final approval of how those leftover funds will be spent, the Legislative Budget Section is...WW…

Trending ArticlesBISMARCK — Twenty-four more people in North Dakota were reported dead from COVID-19 on Wednesday, Oct. 7, more than the number reported on any other day of the pandemic in the state.That's more deaths reported in North Dakota on Wednesday than in the entire months of March, April, June or July each. And as the death toll has spiked over the last month in North Dakota, the state has also continued to report the of any state in the country for multiple consecutive weeks, according to The New York Times. In reporting the wave of the new deaths, the North Dakota Department of...…Trending ArticlesBISMARCK — Twenty-four more people in North Dakota were reported dead from COVID-19 on Wednesday, Oct. 7, more than the number reported on any other day of the pandemic in the state.That's more deaths reported in North Dakota on Wednesday than in the entire months of March, April, June or July each. And as the death toll has spiked over the last month in North Dakota, the state has also continued to report the of any state in the country for multiple consecutive weeks, according to The New York Times. In reporting the wave of the new deaths, the North Dakota Department of...WW…